


Holding Out For a Paladin

by SailorMew4



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Hurt Lance (Voltron), Keith/Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance (Voltron) Angst, M/M, klance, lotor is a dick
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-17
Updated: 2017-10-25
Packaged: 2019-01-18 13:47:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12389325
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SailorMew4/pseuds/SailorMew4
Summary: During a mission to save some coalition members caught by Lotor, Lance is accidentally captured. With the Red Lion out of commission without a pilot they need to bring back Keith for this mission, but will it be enough as Lotor hasspecialplans for our Blue Paladin.





	1. In Deep Water

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so this has a little of a confusing timeline as it doesn't follow the season four timeline so here's a quick little explanation.  
> \- Keith is with the Blade of Marmora currently  
> \- Matt is a part of Team Voltron and lives in the castle  
> \- Lotor is still in charge as Zarkon is out of commission still  
> \- Thus Narti is ALIVE!

_ "Where have all the good men gone, and where are all the gods?" _

* * *

 

Sirens are blaring through the ship as the Paladins of Voltron run through the halls. Sentries following them as Lotor’s Generals lead them like a pack of wolves. 

“This way!”

“Come on we need to hurry!”

“Coran, is the escape pod ready?!”

“Waiting for you in the Hanger!”

With hurried steps the Paladins find the Hanger as Lance looks to see the sentries and the generals following closely behind. He looks to see the others getting the members to quickly enter the escape pod. Lance looks back to see the sentries and generals are still coming quickly. 

Lance growls annoyed as he demands, “Everyone in! I’ll try to see if I can hold them back!”

“Wait Lance! No! Everyone is almost in,” argues Allura as she shows another alien into the pod. When she looks up she sees Lance already leaving the group. “Pidge, Hunk please help him.”

“On it Allura!” agrees Pidge as Hunk nods.

They exit out the door as they try to hold back the sentries though it’s not enough. Lance looks as there’s still more aliens as he says, “Go! I’ll finish this off!”

“But-,” starts Hunk before suddenly both him and Pidge are pushed into the escape pod as Lance sees some aliens go in, but the sentries and generals are closer.

Lance looks back at his team as he takes a deep breath as he forms his rifle shots the escape pod’s door keypad as the doors begin to close quickly.

Hunk wondering what’s taking Lance so long looks up to see take the shot as he yells, “Lance! What are you doing?!”

His shout brings the attention of the others as they take a sharp intake of breath wondering what could possibly going through his mind right now. 

“Lance! You idiot! Hurry up!”

“Get in here!”

“You can still make it!”

The shouts and pleas for him to go through that door went quiet in his ears as he looks at the the door. He couldn’t possibly fit through but something can. He looks down at the Red Bayard… Keith’s Bayard. 

He looks at the Team as they try to rush to keep the door open as he says, “I’m sorry.”

He looks away can’t baring to look at of any of their faces as he throws the Bayard in the pod. He hears the pod flying away with the muffled yells and cries of his teammates as he looks to see the generals look at him with amused looks as Acxa grabs his wrists and forces him in a kneeling position as he hears footsteps.

Blue meets Yellow as Lotor greets with devilish smile, “Greetings, Blue Paladin… I believe we haven’t been properly introduced.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And CLIFFHANGER! Haha hope this wasn't a terrible beginning. I also promise that future chapters will be longer.
> 
> Next time we see what Lance's capture has effected on the Paladins and how they're going to explain to the Blade about getting Keith back.


	2. Bad Waters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the capture of Lance the Paladins need to tell Keith..... no matter how much it's going to hurt him. Meanwhile, Lotor begins his plans for the Blue Paladin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy this chapter also there's a certain part you need to listen to a certain song to get the full effect, but you don't need to if you don't want to. 
> 
> The scene will have this warning ****** ******
> 
> ****  
> **The link is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXbtwH9rarc**  
> 

_ “Where's the streetwise Hercules to fight the rising odds?” _

* * *

 

When they arrive back on the castle ship the air was somber and everyone was quiet. Coran and Matt rush over to greet them as Matt asks, “How was the mission?”

Matt looks at the tears forming in Pidge’s eyes as he asks with a concerned voice, “Pidge? What happened?”

Pidge looks up at her brother as she wraps her arms around Matt as she cries into his cloak as he can’t understand what she’s saying but soothes her by rubbing circles on her back as Coran looks at the group and asks, “Where’s Number Three?”

Allura holds back her tears as she answers sadly, “He sacrificed himself, so we and the prisoners could escape.”

“Lance is gone?” asks Matt shocked as it may have been a short time, and he and Lance haven’t talked much but the way Pidge and Hunk talk about him they were close. He looks at Pidge who is practically sobbing into him as he rubs her head. “Oh, Pidge. I’m sorry.”

Pidge sniffles as he looks at the sorrowful eyes as he adds, “For all you… it’s one thing for Shiro to go missing or Keith leaving,  _ but  _ sacrificing themselves… that’s a  _ whole  _ other story… you would know that Shiro.”

Shiro nods sadly as his eyes were downcast. Matt sighs as Hunk’s tears began to fall as Matt offers, “I know, we don’t know each other well enough, but want a hug?”

Soon Matt lets out a yelp of surprise as Hunk hugs him tightly as Matt tries soothe two people at once as they sit on the couch to help calm down. Shiro sags against the couch as he throws his helmet violently against the wall. Allura takes deep breaths to calm herself but it doesn’t stop the tears trying to flow out.

Coran looks at the scene as he slides over to Allura and offers a comforting shoulder as he reassures, “It’s okay to cry Princess. Just let it out no will mad at you.”

Allura buries her face in Coran’s shoulders as tears fall as she hiccups upsettingly. Shiro clenches his fists angrily as thinks to himself,  _ I should’ve stopped him. We didn’t need to lose another teammate. _

Matt rubs soothingly on the back of Pidge and Hunk as their cries began to go more quiet as he asks, “I don’t want to mention it but,.... Who’s going to pilot the Red Lion?”

Shiro freezes at the question, as did the other Paladins, as he whispers, “Keith.”

“What about Keith? You don’t suggest we just ask Kolivan for him back right away do you?” asks Allura as she wipes her eyes knowing this is now not the time to be crying. “You heard what Keith said it’s serious mission… no matter how much we miss him.”

“ _ No _ , I mean  _ Keith…  _ he doesn’t know,” clarifies Shiro as that was the more harshing blow. Shiro thinks back to the late night talks and advice sessions.  _ He’s going to be crushed when he finds out. _

“Oh,” responds Allura as she bites her lip realizing what he meant. She wasn’t blind. She knows how Keith feels about Lance, and vice versa. 

Hunk sniffles as he harshly wipes his eyes but the tears are still forming as he says, “We  _ need  _ tell him. It’s going to be  _ hard _ , but we  _ need  _ him  _ back _ . We need  _ everyone  _ to get Lance back. Who  _ knows  _ what Lotor is going to do him.”

Pidge pulls away from Matt as she wipes her glasses as she agrees, “I have to agree, I honestly don’t give a  _ shit  _ what the Blade is doing with Keith right now, but we need to tell him in person at the very least what happened. Then if he wants to help by going back to Red then that’s a just bonus, but we  _ can’t  _ hide this.”

Allura takes a deep breath as she looks at Coran as she instructs, “Coran, could you make sure the prisoners are safe while I go call Kolivan.”

Coran looks as he nods. Matt looks as he asks, “Aren’t the prisoners in the healing pods already?”

Allura smiles sadly as she says, “He knows… I just think he needs time alone, he was quite close with Lance… he was like a son to him.”

Shiro gets up as he follows Allura to the Bridge as he says, “We can call him together. Is that alright with you Princess?”

Allura nods as she tries to ignore the crying in the lounge as they walk to the Bridge in silence as they both think something.  _ This is all my fault. I should’ve been better. _

When they arrive at the Bridge Allura activates the caller as she waits a few ticks till she sees the face she wants to see as she buries her emotions deep down as she says, “Kolivan, I’m sorry for short notice, but could I ask you something?”

* * *

 

Meanwhile in the Blade of Marmora Base, Keith trains with another Blade member as they practice fighting with their blades as Keith dodges a swing. The member lunges at him as Keith easily turns his body as their blades connect as Keith tries to throw him off. Keith holds the member’s arm. He hears someone clearing their throat as he looks up to see Kolivan with a stoic face as he asks, “Kolivan, sir, did you need something?”

“Yes, we need to talk after you’re finished,” answers Kolivan.

The member quickly trips Keith placing his foot on his chest as he says, “No need sir, we just finished.”

He got off as Keith sits up as he walks over to Kolivan and asks, “What did you need?”

That’s when Keith sees it. Hesitation. Kolivan actually hesitates before he says in a serious tone, “The Princess has requested that her and I have a meeting with you nearby. We’re leaving immediately. No questions asked.”

Keith smiles at the thought of seeing his teammates. Lance would always try to call him to update him on what’s going on with them. He would see Shiro who probably adjusted to his position of leader right away and Allura, she’s must’ve been working hard for the coalition with him. 

Hunk, he really misses his cooking the Blade’s food were always missing something but he couldn’t place it. Then there’s Pidge, who, as Lance told him, finally found Matt. Good for her, family is the reason she fighting against the Galra so hard. 

Then finally there’s Lance. Keith felt horrible that he left him, but it’s for the best. Shiro is a better leader and he was never good people person anyway. Though he can’t help but wonder what Lance has been up to. 

However, this sudden meeting does raises questions to Keith as he sees Kolivan walking out the door as he asks, “Do you know why-?”

“I said, ‘No questions asked’,” repeats Kolivan with a hard stare, but Keith sees something else behind that cold stare. Pity. Why does Kolivan have that look?

Keith doesn’t question again as he’s not going to argue seeing his teammates again. Seeing his brother Shiro again, that itself brings a small smile on his face, Allura’s confident attitude, Coran’s silly attempts to understand human culture, Hunk’s positive attitude, Pidge’s new happiness of the addition of her brother, and Lance. Just Lance. Lance can always brighten any room.

* * *

 

Lance groans as he is thrown into the cell with cuffs. Lance quickly sits up to be as comfortable as possible. Lotor’s generals locks the cell as he quickly crawls to hear what they might be saying.

“Are you sure he needs to be “unharmed”? We can be finished with him right here right now. One less Paladin of Voltron to deal with.”

“He’s more useful alive than dead, Zethrid.”

“He probably holds a lot of information in that little head of his.”

“Fine. How do we know he’ll share it?”

“Oh we not need to worry about that… he’s already listening. Isn’t that right Paladin?”

Lance freezes on the spot as Lotor walks in as he kneels down with a smirk on his face while Lance counters him with a cold glare as Lotor says, “Now, no need for hostility. I just want to talk.”

Lance stays silent as he thinks,  _ Stay silent. If you stay silent. He won’t hold anything against you. _

“Ah the silent treatment. Not to worry I don’t mind learning more about you through other ways,” says Lotor as he looks at his generals. “Could you pull information on the Paladins?”

“Yes sir.”

“Ah the Black Paladin was originally the ‘Champion’. He lost an arm while fighting in the arena. He’s the obvious leader of Voltron besides the Princess,” informs Azor with stoic face.

“The Green Paladin is a hacker genius! They say he recently allied with the Freedom Fighters. He can easily hack through any computer,” compliments Ezor as Lance holds a stone face but it’s  _ hard _ .

“The Yellow Paladin is known for his engineering skills and is most known for saving a Galra controlled Balmera planet,” informs Zethrid with a serious face as Lance tries not to move at the mention of his best friend.

“And I personally know about the Red Paladin and the Princess,” adds Lotor with a smirk. “The Princess. Originally the pilot of your castle ship and is one of the last of her kind. She was able to hold her own against Haggar.  _ Now _ , she took your position of the Pilot of the Blue Lion, no? Quite the fast learner she is. She was able to outsmart me for a moment when we first met while you were still losing control of the Red Lion.”

_ Okay,  _ **_that_ ** _ stung _ . Lance bites his cheek to keep him from talking or show emotion but he knows he’s right about Allura being a better pilot. 

“Oh! Don’t forget how she gave Zethrid a challenge while fighting her!” adds Ezor, which doesn’t make Lance anymore upset at the truth. 

“Really?” wonders Lotor with an intrigued voice before turning back to Lance. “Seems the Princess is a better pilot  _ and  _ fighter then you? Must be shame considering you were doing it longer than her.”

Lance keeps a stoic face as Lotor sees the anguish in his eyes as he continues, “And the finally the Red Paladin. The most impressive from what I heard. Pilot of  _ both  _ the Red and Black Lions the most hardest to control. An impressive fighter and pilot. And, oh, this is interesting reported that he’s Half-Galra.”

Lance’s eyes widen without his consent as Lotor sees it and flashes a victorious smirk as he adds, “And is currently working with rebel Galra fighters… hmm is that where he is? Did he realize Voltron was holding him back?”

Lance lets out a harsh shuddering breath to calm himself as he realizes something.  _ You just showed weakness. _

Lotor chuckles darkly as he adds right next to his ear, “Or maybe that  _ you  _ were holding him back? Maybe you’re holding everyone back? I mean there’s hardly any information on you just that you’re a good shot which can easily be replaced.”

Lance closes his eyes he thinks to himself,  _ Don’t let him get to you. It’s just words. He’s trying to get to you. _

Though a thought did appear in his mind.  _ But what if he was right? _

Lance remembers how Keith said that a  _ part  _ of the reason was so Shiro could reconnect with the Black Lion. What if… the other reason was him holding him back? Lance’s vision began to blur with tears as a single tear fell without him knowing.

Lotor sees this as he says, “Ah, now that’s what I was looking for.”

Lance decides to glare at them before he notices something.  _ Wasn’t there five of them? _

Suddenly he feels a pressure on his neck as he can’t breath and his mind goes blank as a silent scream is let out. 

* * *

 

When they arrive at the castle Keith half expected that the other Paladins would be waiting for them in the Hanger, but the only one is, who he assumes by the appearance, Pidge’s brother Matt.

Kolivan firmly shakes his hand as he asks, “Is the Princess and the rest of Voltron ready for our meeting?”

“Yes, sir. They’re waiting-,” starts Matt before Kolivan walks ahead of him. “At the Bridge.”

Matt sighs as he looks and sees Keith as he forces a smile as he greets, “Hi, you must Keith. I’m Matt.”

“Nice to meet you,” greets back Keith as they begin to walk through the halls. Keith takes notice it seems more  _ cold _ than usual. Keith looks at Matt as he seems to be avoiding his gaze. Why, he’s not sure, but it does fill with uneasiness.

When they arrive at the Bridge Keith takes a deep breath as he enters before he’s bombarded with two hugs from the side. He looks to see Pidge and Hunk hugging him even more tightly than when he left for the Blade of Marmora. “Um hi?”

“It’s good to see you back, man.”

“Yeah, it’s been weird without you.”

Keith looks around the room before he notices a certain is missing he asks, “Where’s Lance?”

As if any warmth left in the room disappeared Keith feels a sudden chill up his spine as Allura, who is still in her Paladin uniform, walks up to him.  _ Why hasn’t she changed it’s been a couple hours? _

Allura takes a deep breath as she says, “Keith, there’s no easy way to say this, but Lance…. Lance is  _ gone _ .”

Keith’s eyes go wide as he asks angrily, “What do you mean  _ gone _ ? Like gone on a mission? Gone somewhere? Wh-what do you mean by  _ gone _ ?”

Shiro walks up from behind Allura as he grabs Keith’s shoulder, the sign that usually gives him warmth leaves him cold, as Shiro clarifies, “We mean he’s  _ gone _ Keith. He got captured on our last mission. Right now, Lotor has him. I’m  _ so sorry _ .”

Realization and heartache drenches him as Keith pulls back from the touch as he whispers, “No. He can’t be  _ gone.  _ He’s  _ Lance _ . He never leaves.”

“Keith,” starts Shiro sadly about to reach out again but Keith pulls back as he shuts his eyes closed as he storms out of the Bridge as tears start to form. He hears Kolivan yelling for him before Shiro calms him down saying he needs time. 

He’s only half right. He also needs  _ Lance  _ to be  _ here _ .

* * *

 

Kolivan growls at the closed as he asks, “Don’t you need to ask about the Red Lion?”

“We do, but Keith needs time. Lance and him have grown close, he needs time for it set in,” says Shiro as he looks at the door sadly.

* * *

 

********

Keith somehow goes to his old room as he sits down taking deep breaths as it really hits him. Lance is  _ gone _ . And he wasn’t there to help him. He couldn’t even see Lance with a smile on his face one more time. Keith curls up against the bed as he sees something underneath his bed. He grabs it out of curiosity. 

It’s Lance’s hoodie.

Keith holds onto to it closer as he sees dried tear stains on it as he mutters, “You missed me  _ that  _ much, that you cried?”

Tears began to stain the hoodie more as he holds onto to it tighter as an image of Lance appears in his mind. Maybe if he holds it tighter he can still hear Lance’s heartbeat to show he’s still here, but as he suspected all he gets is silence as Lance’s ocean eyes plague his mind.

He needs Lance to be okay. To be here.  _ Safe _ . Not with some little purple tyrant’s son doing who knows to him! Where was the boy that would always joke and radiates joy where he goes?

Maybe, this just a bad dream and when he wakes up Lance will be right behind him with that pearly white smile bringing more joy in that than his entire lonely life, but Keith knows that it isn’t the case for these tears are too real to be a dream.

He really shouldn't have gone with the Blade. Sure, they’re fine, but sometimes he’s even more lonely than he ever was knowing what he left behind. His brother, a new family,... a home. 

He can’t deny it any longer. He’s truly in love with Lance McClain, but he’s  _ gone _ . He should’ve stayed maybe he could've prevented this. 

_ All  _ of this. 

Keith always knew what Lance was- _ is  _ to him. His right-hand man. His stability. And now looks like his home too. 

The tears keep flowing, but from what he doesn’t know. Is it from sadness that Lance is gone or anger from the fact he let him go? He never should’ve left Lance. He should’ve at least told him how he feels maybe then… but Keith needs to realize maybe isn’t going to stop these tears. He only has one thing to say though, even though Lance can’t hear him.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Come back! I’m finally back...and you’re not here,” cries Keith as he holds onto to the hoodie tighter. “Please come back, I’ll stay with you, just don’t leave me alone again. I don’t want to be alone anymore.”

The tears come in rapid drops as he hiccups into the hoodie as he holds himself tighter as Lance’s smell is still on the jacket. Keith embraces the hoodie tighter trying to trick himself that Lance is here with him and their family. 

“I don’t want to lose you again. Please, please come back. I don’t want be left alone again,” begs Keith hoping for an answer, but his pleas are left unanswered. “I couldn’t let you go. It hurts too much. No matter how hard I try forget them they come back. So don’t leave me alone. I’m tired of being alone. It hurts too much.”

He wants Lance to be right by his side. He  _ needs  _ Lance to be right his side as Keith curls up on his side as he whispers, “Please come back to me.”

Though after that last plea he knows it won’t stop the feelings. Nothing can. What Keith would do just to see Lance smile again and be here with him… to just know he’s not going to be alone, but that was just his life. People leaving him without him ever knowing when he’ll see them again.

He thought Lance would be different. His mom left him. His dad left him. Shiro went missing and disappeared. And now Lance is gone. And he didn’t even see him,  _ really  _ see him for months.

Now, Keith would be  _ lucky  _ if Lance will be the same when he comes back home safe and sound with a happy heart and a bright smile. Though he curls up against the hoodie his scent invading his senses as he drifts off dreaming about the boy he loves. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any tears! But I hope you did... sorry


	3. Test of Gold; Adversity of Strong Men

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith misses Lance as he receives comfort and reassurance on his safe return, however it seems Lotor won't make it happen.

_ “Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed?” _

* * *

 

Keith wakes up to the sound of knocking at his door as he rubs his bloodshot eyes as he realizes that Lance’s hoodie is covering him like a blanket. The knocking continues as he says, “Sorry, Shiro. I’ll be right out.”

He hears a pair of feet shuffling as he corrects, “Uh...it’s  _ Hunk  _ actually.”

Keith is taken back as he opens the door as Hunk greets him with a shy wave, “Hey, you’ve been in here for a varga. I thought I should check on you.”

Keith’s eyes widen for a moment shocked he slept that long before he asks, “Is Kolivan still here?”

“Yeah, Allura and him are still talking,” answers Hunk as he looks in the room and rubs his head. “You mind if I come in?”

“Sure,” accepts Keith as he moves to the side to let him.  _ Wonder what Hunk wants? _

Hunk looks around the room as he sees Lance’s hoodie and whispers, “Was wondering where that was.”

Keith looks at the hoodie as he passes the hoodie to Hunk as he says, “You probably want to hold it till we get him back.”

“As much as I would like to have a reminder of Lance. I know he want you to hold it,” insists Hunk with a gentle smile. 

Though that’s not the only reason. Hunk is not blind. He knows Lance loves Keith ever since he formed that “rivalry”. Hunk would love nothing more than to keep that jacket with him at all times to know his best friend is still there he can see how much losing Lance affected Keith. 

The bloodshot red eyes with dried tear stains contrasting to his pale skin and light violet eyes. He’s still in his Blade uniform despite it, or at he thinks so, being uncomfortable. Keith has a downcast look as he stares at the hoodie with a fond look. 

“He really missed you,” says Hunk catching Keith off guard before Hunk fiddles with his fingers. “I mean we all missed you cause we didn’t know when or if, which trust us we  _ really  _ don’t want to think about that, we see you, but Lance… I think he missed you the most.”

“I missed him too,” starts Keith as he sees Hunk’s knowing smile. “And Shiro too. All of you really.”

Hunk nods in understanding before they stand in silence awkwardly before Hunk asks, “Anyway, I think we need to talk. Can we sit?”

Keith nods as he sits on the bed with Hunk as he asks, “So what did you want to talk about?”

“Keith, I know you mostly talk to Shiro about these type of things, but dude don’t blame yourself you weren’t there you couldn’t stop him. If anyone should've stopped him it should’ve been us,” reassures Hunk as he thinks about when he saw Lance make sure they escaped. 

Keith sees Hunk clench his fist as Keith argues, “At least you guys had the option to save him. I should've been there maybe if you had an another Paladin he might’ve made it.”

“Keith, no. Don’t blame yourself. You had no idea that was going to happen. You are the least at fault here,” reassures Hunk as he tries to grab Keith’s shoulder.

“But I am at fault!” shouts Keith as he stands up as Hunk flinches at the sudden anger. “If I didn’t leave Lance would still be here! I could've helped! Give some backup or something! If I was there maybe Lance would be here smiling! Making jokes! People would be happy!”

Before Keith could finish Hunk hugs him causing Keith to go silent as Hunk reassures, “Keith, if you were there Lance would’ve still done the same thing. Sure maybe we would’ve made it, or Lance would’ve still sacrifice himself, or maybe something worse we could’ve lost two people instead of one.”

Keith awkwardly returns the hug as his feelings are all over the place. He’s happy he’s back home. He’s angry at himself and the team for letting Lance get captured like. He’s sad that Lance is gone. Though most of all he’s scared. 

Scared that with each second they are here instead of looking for Lance; Lotor is doing something horrible to him. That each second Lance might be closer to death. Each second Lance would lose hope of them coming. Each second he’d lose hope on saving him. Just losing more time. 

Hunk lets go as he says, “Keith, we are going to save Lance, and when we do tell him.”

Before Keith could question what he meant Allura’s voice yells, “Everyone come to the Bridge Lotor is sending a message!”   
  


Keith didn’t need to be told twice. When he sees Lotor he’s going to  _ pay _ .

* * *

 

When Keith and Hunk enter the Bridge Allura thanks, “Thank you for coming quickly, but Lotor is requesting permission to chat. I needed everyone here, just in case.”

Everyone nods in agreement as Shiro asks, “Pidge, Matt could you see if you could download the message when he begins?”

“Already on it, sir.”

“You got it Shiro.”

Shiro nods at Allura as she hits a button to start the message. Lotor’s face appears as he greets in an overly cheery manner, “Ah, I see you  _ do  _ wish to talk Voltron, and Princess might I add you’re looking quite lovely today.”

“Enough with the formalities Lotor. Where. Is. Lance,” demands Allura with a cold glare.

Lotor smirks as he looks at the other faces of Voltron. The Princess with her icy cold glare that made her position of Blue Lion fitting. The Green Paladin though small is glaring daggers at him to the best of his ability. The Yellow Paladin looks more stone faced, but the look of worry and concern shows that he  _ knows  _ what Lotor might do. The Black Paladin oddly enough seem more stone faced than the Yellow Paladin, yet his expression shows worry. Then there’s the Red Paladin.

If he didn’t have their precious Blue Paladin he might be a little intimidated.  _ Might _ . The Red Paladin looks like he is ready to kill, he can see why people spread rumors of him being Galra if he always had that look. Though he isn’t wearing the traditional Paladin’s armor, he guesses that rebel group rumor is true. 

Though it isn’t the Red Paladin’s Galra-like glare, but the eyes itself. The eyes hold the same fear as the Blue Paladin did.  _ How quaint. He returns his affections.  _

Lotor looks at Allura as he answers, “Now, Princess shouldn’t we chat first?”

“Where. Is. He,” repeats Allura with everyone’s glares hardening.

Lotor shrugs carelessly as he answers, “What do you see in him? You got your much better Red Pilot with you now, and you’re much more superb than him as the Blue Paladin.”

Lotor can feel the anger radiating off the Paladins as Allura demands, “I will not ask again Lotor. Where. Is. He.”

Lotor snaps his fingers as Narti still holding Lance by the neck as he holds a dazed look on his face as Lotor smirks at how that anger turns into worry and concern.

“Lance!”

“Buddy!”

“Lance! Can you hear us!”

“Where are you!”

“Lance!”

Lotor smiles pleased at the reactions as he says, “Paladins of Voltron meet my Bargaining Chip.”

“Let him go, Lotor. Now” orders Allura with a deadly glare.

“Now, now I propose we make a deal,” suggests Lotor with an evil smile. “Surrender Voltron and you get your Paladin back…. or else.”

Allura swallows her fear back as she asks, “Or else what?”

“I’m glad you asked Princess,” says Lotor as he turns to Narti. “Paladins, I’m sure people have told you about us. Narti, show them what we can do.”

“Grab the gun,” orders Lotor as slowly Lance’s hand slowly and shakingly grabs Acxa’s gun on the ground with resistance. 

“Lance! What are you doing?!” yells Pidge worried about what this is leading to.

“Put it to your head,” continues Lotor as Lance does so with a shaky hand. 

“Wait- don’t!” yells Hunk scared suddenly knowing where Lotor is going with this.

“Put your finger on the trigger,” continues Lotor with a smirk seeing the fear revealing itself more and more among the Paladins.

“Stop!” cries out the Paladins. 

“No!” yells Keith as he reaches out before pulling back realizing Lance isn't as close as he thought. No, he is  _ much _ farther.

Lotor orders with a satisfied smile, “Narti, let him go.”

Narti immediately moves her hand away from Lance’s neck as he takes deep breaths and coughs violently at the sudden control of his body. He groans before he looks up when he hears the concern cries of his name. 

“Lance!”

“Lance! Can you hear us?!”

“What did you do him?!”

“Lance!  _ Lance _ !”

Lance looks up at the video to see everyone watching with horror filled eyes then at Lotor’s content smile. 

Oh no. Oh  _ no.  _ What did Lotor  _ do _ ? Whatever it was he can't be good. 

Lance groans while sitting up and looks to see Lotor as he turns to the others and yells, “Don't listen to him! Whatever he said or did it's a  _ trap _ ! I'm fine! Just keep Voltron  _ away _ from him!”

Lotor glares at Lance as he orders, “Get him out of my sight.”

The Paladins watch in horror as one of Lotor’s general pulls away from view with Lance screaming about it being a trap. Lotor looks at the Paladins as he finishes, “Perhaps we can see each other again…. where we can have a proper discussion about this war.”

The video ends as all the Paladins look in horror at what they just witnessed. 

* * *

 

Lotor closes the screen before his smile fades as he marches to the cell with Lance in. Lotor looks at how Lance slumps against the wall before Lotor kneels down to his level and demands quietly, “How did you do that?”

“Do what? Warn them? Care? It’s called having a heart,” says Lance as his eyes are closing as he forces himself awake.  _ Whatever that Narti lady did really drained me _ .

“No, I saw you. You were fighting her control. I could see it,” clarifies Lotor as he thinks back to when he first ordered him. “So how?”

Lance sees the hidden worry on Lotor’s face as smirks in satisfaction, glad that despite not knowing the answer he could possibly get in Lotor’s head, as he says, “I don’t know what you mean.”

Lotor smiles again before he punches Lance in head hard enough that Lance immediately falls unconscious. Lotor’s smile remains on his face before Ezor sees it with a confused tilt of her head she asks, “Prince Lotor, why are smiling?”

“The Blue Paladin is stronger than we previously thought, he can fight Narti’s control,” answers Lotor as they return to the Bridge as he sits on his throne.

“How is that a  _ good  _ thing, sir?” asks Ezor thinking how fighting off their biggest trump card couldn’t be anything, but a disadvantage to them.

“That means that Narti did an excellent job of making sure they’re connection stays. Isn’t that right?” asks Lotor as he and the other three generals look at Narti then at Kova. 

“So, what do we do now? Attack Voltron head on while they are thinking of plan?” asks Zethrid curiously.

“No, I have plans, but for now I believe I need to make some arrangements for our guest,” answers Lotor as he grins when the doors close on him. “What can I say, I adore a challenge, especially when I win.”

* * *

 

The Paladins stare at where Lotor and more importantly Lance’s faces once were. 

“We need to save him!” cries Pidge breaking the silence as she’s already heading to the Hanger.

“Wait, Pidge. We need a plan. Lotor is smart, going in without a plan is a bad idea,” points out Shiro as he tries to hold her back.

“Well, I’m smarter than that purple asshat any day!” argues Pidge as she yanks her arm out of Shiro’s arm.

“No, Pidge. We’re all worried about Lance, but Shiro is right. To make sure Lance is safe we need to stay calm and think of a plan to rescue him,” argues Allura as she wipes her eyes from any tears forming.

“I got a plan. I have a fist, and Lotor still has a nose,” adds Keith as he shows his fist. “Lotor  _ crossed  _ the line as soon as he took Lance. Now, that we know he can  _ kill  _ him anytime we’re just gonna stand here? Not on my watch.”

“Keith!” chides Shiro, Allura, and even Kolivan. 

“Keith, you know how the Galra work. These things take time. We need to wait,” points out Kolivan. “Lotor, is especially harder to read than Zarkon.”

“But, Keith’s right. Lotor might not be  _ killing  _ Lance, but I  _ know  _ what those type of Galra do to prisoners. For all we know Lotor could torturing him as we speak,” adds in Matt who remembers exactly what the Galra have done.

Soon enough yells are being shot off

“Rescuing!”

“Planning!”

“Leaving!”

“Staying!”

“It’s  _ Lance _ !”   
  


“It’s  _ Lotor _ !”

“ **_ENOUGH_ ** !”

Everyone turns to Hunk who has tears forming in his eyes from anger and sadness as he says, “Look, I want to save Lance so badly. He’s my best friend, he’s practically a brother to me, and I want him back now more than ever, but we need a plan. We’re no good to Lance if we’re killed trying to save him.” 

Everyone nods in agreement as Hunk finishes, “So, for now we plan, sort things out, then we can save Lance.”

Everyone is quiet before Coran sneaks over to Allura as he mentions to her softly, “Princess, perhaps now is the time to ask Keith.”

Allura nods as she walks over to Keith who is avoiding her gaze as she grabs his shoulder and says, “Keith, I’m sorry if it seemed I don’t care for Lance, but I do. However, we didn’t just call you so we could tell you about Lance. I-  _ we  _ were hoping you could pilot the Red Lion.”

Keith’s eyes widen as he looks at the others who avoid his gaze confirming this is true as he looks at Kolivan and asks, “Did  _ you  _ know she was going to ask?”

“I did,” answers Kolivan with a nod. “It’s your choice though. You can come back with the Blade with me if you wished not to do so, but that doesn’t mean after saving the Blue Paladin you can’t come back if you choose to stay for now.”

It’s a no brainer. Keith knows he staying so he says, “Then I’m staying. I need to save Lance.”

Kolivan nods as he finishes before walking away, “I wish you luck on this mission.”

Keith looks back as at the team as they give him a group hug as he enjoys the warmth of his family again. Though he looks at his clothes as he walks to his room to change as Allura says, “We’ll meet you in Red’s Hanger.”

* * *

 

Keith takes off his Blade uniform as he goes to his hangar to see his red jacket is on his hanger. A familiar scent overwhelms him as he realizes why. It’s the same smell on Lance’s hoodie. Keith enjoys it as a small smile overtakes his face before he places it back on the hanger. He changes into his Paladin armor, but as he’s about to walk out before he sees the hoodie on the ground. 

He walks over and picks it as he holds close to his face. He stands up to put it back in Lance’s room, before he quickly lifts his pillow and places his knife and Lance’s hoodie underneath it. 

He stands at the door as he whispers looking at the pillow, “We’ll save you. Don’t worry.”

* * *

 

Keith walks in the Hanger as he sees everyone around Red. Keith walks over as he asks, “Has Red been silent since Lance got...taken?”

“Sadly, yes. I think Red got closer to Lance than she wanted to. Take your time. I know Red misses you,” answers Allura as she and the other Paladins sit at the base of Red.

Keith walks to Red with his heart beating fast. Would she be mad? Sad? Happy? 

Keith takes a seat in the chair he once rode in as he clutches the handles as he whispers, “Hey, Red… it’s me Keith. Your... _ old  _ Paladin. I know. You’re probably mad at me for leaving you for Black and then the Blade, but I didn’t want to leave you. Plus, you picked Lance pretty quick. I bet he wa- _ is  _ a good Paladin.”

She stays silent as he says, “Please, talk to me. I know our bond weakened because of me, but  _ please  _ I need your help. Lance is in trouble.”

He hears a growl in his head telling him that she knows as Keith pets her mentally as he apologizes, “Right, you know that already...I’m sorry….. thanks for at least doing something, but I need more than that…. I need you to let me Pilot you again.”

**_I need you to trust me._ **

Keith jumps in surprise as he sees the controls slightly lighting up. He looks down to see the other Paladins don’t notice. He nods as he answers back, “I trust you Red.”

**_Then I need to show you something. I need to show you why I picked Lance. So, close your eyes._ **

Keith looks at her in surprise as he takes a deep breath and closes his eyes. Then in his mind he sees memories of him and Lance together.

_ “We did it… we are a good team.” _

_ “Keith! Don’t do this!” _

_ “Oh and Lance,....Leave the math to Pidge.” _

_ “Yeah, who am I going to make fun of?” _

He feels warmth with each line, but something is bothering, so Keith asks, “Who’s...who’s memories are you showing?”

**_Lance’s memories. I’m connected to the both of you, but you need his connection to complete our bond._ **

“But, how does this help our bond?” asks Keith as more memories played.

**_Lance is important to both of us. That’s all you need to know._ **

As Keith watches more of Lance he feels sadness. He sighs it was his choice to go with the Blade, and if he needs to confess. He did it for Lance. All that talk about stepping aside scared Keith. Lance never looked so... _ vulnerable _ . Did that deed make him a bad person? If it does then call him a monster, but he couldn’t make Lance feel that way.

What was Lance even thinking about stepping aside? It was dumb thought. Dumb, but terrifying. Lance shouldn’t feel left out.

Suddenly a memory of Lance watching Hunk, Pidge, and Matt talking science appears in his mind with a wave of loneliness coming with it. 

Oh no. He didn’t  _ know  _ this would happen. He thought Lance would more happy with him gone, not more upset and lonely. 

Keith feels tears as he knows Voltron with Lance was his home. Without everyone here it’s just empty, dark, and  _ cold _ .  _ So cold. _

Keith knows of the feeling of homesickness, he felt it when he was with Blade and not with his family, but home is never a place it’s a feeling; so, his home is far, far, far away from him along with his heart.

He never got use to that empty feeling without Lance after he met him and soon became friends with him then as the universe decided made him fall for the Blue Paladin from Cuba. He pushes the sadness away as some happy memories played as if it wants to apologize.

He sees Lance and him stuck in an elevator, playing with those spores like a snowball fight, the food fight,  _ all  _ of those playful arguments. 

Keith smiles he gets it. He needs to focus on the happy times as much as possible in this tragic time. He chuckles at the thought Lance calming him down through memories.  _ Even when you’re not here you already cheer me up. _

His home might be far away from him at the moment, but he’s as close as ever. Keith’s smile drops as he knows this mission isn’t going to be easy. It never is, but he has to stay strong, for Lance.

He’s fighting for him. To see him make a joke. To see him laugh like a sea melody. To see him flash that pearly white smile. To see his ocean eyes light up any room. To see his home once again. To return that life that Keith misses and yearns to have once again. To see everything go back to way where everyone is happy. He’s doing this for Lance… and himself.

A fire burns inside him as he opens his eyes as he hears Red’s majestic roar. Keith looks to see the other Paladins cheering that he reformed his bond with Red. He says, “Thanks, Red. Don’t worry. I’ll get him back… for the both us.”

**_You better._ **

Keith walks out of her cockpit as he promises silently, “I promise Lance. I’m going to save you and bring you home.”


End file.
